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Endogenous sex hormone levels and risk of cognitive decline in an older biracial cohort
Yaffe K, Barnes D, Lindquist K, Cauley J, Simonsick EM, Penninx B, Satterfield S, Harris T et al.. Neurobiology of aging, 2006-11-09
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Background Older women treated with conjugated estrogens may have an increased risk of dementia, but the effect of naturally occurring sex hormones on cognition is not certain. Methods Bioavailable estradiol and free testosterone level were obtained from 792 (55% men, 51% black) participants. We assessed cognition with the Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS), Selective Reminding Test (SRT) and CLOX 1 at baseline and 2 years later. Results Women in the lowest estradiol tertile were more likely than those in the highest tertile to decline (> or = 1.0 S.D. of change) on 3MS (25% versus 9%, adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 3.9; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.6-9.6) and on SRT (28% versus 12%, adjusted OR [95% CI] = 3.3 [1.4-7.9]) but not CLOX 1. There was a borderline association between low estradiol tertile and decline on SRT in men (22% versus 14%, adjusted OR [95% CI] = 1.9 [0.9-3.9]). Testosterone level was not associated with decline in cognition in either men or women. Findings did not differ by race. Conclusions Older women with low estradiol levels were more likely to experience decline in global cognitive function and verbal memory, and a similar trend was observed for verbal memory in men. This supports the hypothesis that endogenous sex hormones may play an important role in the maintenance of cognitive function in older adults.
Key findings
- Background Older women treated with conjugated estrogens may have an increased risk of dementia, but the effect of naturally occurring sex hormones on cognition is not certain.
- Results Women in the lowest estradiol tertile were more likely than those in the highest tertile to decline (> or = 1.0 S.D. of change) on 3MS (25% versus 9%, adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 3.9; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.6-9.6) and on SRT (28% versus 12%, adjusted OR [95% CI] = 3.3 [1.4-7.9]) but not CLOX 1.
- There was a borderline association between low estradiol tertile and decline on SRT in men (22% versus 14%, adjusted OR [95% CI] = 1.9 [0.9-3.9]).
- Testosterone level was not associated with decline in cognition in either men or women.
Why it matters
Older women with the lowest estradiol levels were more likely to decline in global cognitive function and verbal memory over two years, with a similar trend for verbal memory in men; testosterone was not linked to decline. This supports a possible role for natural sex hormones in maintaining cognition, but it is an observational finding, not a treatment.
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Study details
- Effect sizeor = 1.0
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 47/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Neurobiology of aging) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Neurobiology of Aging: journal h-index 263 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2007 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 123 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 5.9 citations a year over 21 year(s) since 2007 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 4 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 11 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Steven Ron Cummings: h-index 168 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, San Francisco: institution h-index 1,915 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 6 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 17097195) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Yaffe, K., Barnes, D., Lindquist, K., Cauley, J., Simonsick, E. M., Penninx, B., et al. (2007). Endogenous sex hormone levels and risk of cognitive decline in an older biracial cohort. Neurobiology of aging. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2006.10.004
Vancouver
Yaffe K, Barnes D, Lindquist K, Cauley J, Simonsick EM, Penninx B, et al. Endogenous sex hormone levels and risk of cognitive decline in an older biracial cohort. Neurobiology of aging. 2007. doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2006.10.004. PMID: 17097195.
BibTeX
@article{yaffe2007-17097195,
author = {Yaffe, K. and Barnes, D. and Lindquist, K. and Cauley, J. and Simonsick, E. M. and Penninx, B. and Satterfield, S. and Harris, T. and others},
title = {{Endogenous sex hormone levels and risk of cognitive decline in an older biracial cohort}},
journal = {Neurobiology of aging},
year = {2007},
doi = {10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2006.10.004},
pmid = {17097195},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2006.10.004}
}
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